Chapter 5 • Special Populations
Introduction
This final chapter provides data describing the distribution of fatal occupational injuries and nonfatal occupational injuries and illnesses among selected special populations at risk within the labor force. The chapter focuses on young workers, older workers, and Hispanic workers.
The importance of providing data on special populations is supported by two National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) surveillance program needs: the National Occupational Research Agenda (NORA) and the NIOSH surveillance strategic plan. NORA emphasizes the need to increase the amount of information available to guide research, and thus it looks to surveillance sources for data on special populations. This NORA priority reflects the view of the public health community that workers with certain biologic, social, or economic characteristics may be at increased risk of occupational injuries and illnesses. The increasing size of the U.S. labor force and its shifts in ethnic and age distributions forecast increasing numbers of workers in these at-risk groups.
The focus on special populations is also supported by the NIOSH surveillance strategic plan. The objective of this plan is to analyze existing sources of data and disseminate findings to add to existing knowledge about the magnitude, circumstances, and trends in injuries among special populations at risk (see Objective 3.5 in NIOSH [2001]). Many of these populations have been underserved within the occupational safety and health community. Many questions exist about these population groups and the prevalence and incidence of fatal occupational injuries and nonfatal injuries and illnesses. This Chartbook represents an attempt to compile and disseminate available information.
Data for the figures come from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) and the Massachusetts Department of Public Health. BLS data sources include the Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries (CFOI) and the Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses (SOII). CFOI is used to characterize fatal occupational injuries among these special populations at risk, and SOII is used to characterize nonfatal injuries and illnesses among the three groups. The Massachusetts Department of Public Health conducts occupational injury surveillance activities through the NIOSH Sentinel Event Notification System for Occupational Risk (SENSOR) Program to develop model surveillance and related outreach activities for preventing occupational injuries among young workers in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Data from this program are included to provide perspective from one of the NIOSH State partners.
Young workers aged 16–19 accounted for 6.9 million or 5.1% of all employed workers in 2001, and those aged 55 and older accounted for 18.3 million or 13.6%. The wholesale trade, retail trade, and services industry sectors were the major employment sectors for both the younger and older workers (Table 5–1). Fatality rates differed by age group, ranging from a low of 1.1 per 100,000 among workers aged 16–17 to a high of 11.5 per 100,000 among workers aged 65 and older (Figure 5–1). Of the 1.5 million injury and illness cases involving days away from work during 2001, younger workers accounted for 3.0%, and older workers accounted for 10.5% (Figure 5–2). The severity of work loss varied by age group: Workers aged 14–15 and 16–19 had median work losses of 2 and 4 days in 2001, and workers aged 55–64 and 65 and older had median work losses of 10 and 14 days, respectively (Figure 5–3). The severity of work loss varied slightly among racial and ethnic groups, from 5 to 7 days in 2001. Hispanic workers had the highest median work loss of 7 days (Figure 5–4).
Employment and Age
How were employed workers distributed by age and industry in 2001?
 | Table 5-1 Number and distribution of employed workers in major industry groups by age, 2001. Young workers aged 16-19 accounted for 6.9 million or 5.1% of all employed workers, and those aged 55 and older accounted for 18.3 million or 13.6%. Of the young workers aged 16-19, 54.2% were employed in wholesale and retail trade, and 27.5% in services. Of the employed workers aged 55 and older, 40.0% were employed in services, and 17.5% in wholesale and retail trade. (Source: BLS [2001].) |
Fatal Injuries and Age
How did fatal occupational injuries differ by age of worker in 2002?
 | Figure 5-1 Number and rate of fatal occupational injuries by age of worker, 2002. Workers aged 25-54 accounted for 3,672 or 66.5% of the 5,524 fatal occupational injuries in 2002. Fatality rates ranged from 1.1 per 100,000 among workers aged 16-17 to 11.5 per 100,000 among workers aged 65 and older. Fatalities among workers aged 65 and older accounted for 9% (494 fatalities) of all fatal occupational injuries. (Note: Labor force data are unavailable for youths aged 15 and younger. This precludes estimating rates for these workers.) (Source: BLS [2003a].) |
Nonfatal Injuries and Illnesses
Age
How did nonfatal occupational injuries and illnesses differ by age of worker in 2001?
 | Figure 5-2 Number and distribution of nonfatal injuries and illnesses involving days away from work in private industry by age of worker, 2001. Younger workers accounted for 45,443 cases or 3.0% of the 1.5 million injury and illness cases involving days away from work for which age was reported. Workers aged 55 and older accounted for 160,231 cases or 10.5%. Age was not reported for 16,930 cases. (Source: BLS [2003b,c].) |
Severity
How did the severity of work loss from nonfatal occupational injuries and illnesses vary by age group in 2001?
 | Figure 5-3 Median days away from work due to occupational injury or illness in private industry by age, 2001. Median days away from work due to injury or illness increased with age. In 2001, workers aged 14-15 and 16-19 had median work losses of 2 and 4 days, respectively. Workers aged 55-64 and 65 and older had median work losses of 10 and 14 days, respectively. (Sources: BLS [2003b,c].) |
How did the severity of work loss from nonfatal occupational injuries and illnesses vary by race/ethnicity in 2001?
 | Figure 5-4 Median days away from work due to occupational injury or illness in private industry by race/ethnicity, 2001. Median days of work loss varied from 5 to 7 days in 2001. Hispanic workers had the highest median work loss of 7 days. Race/ethnicity was not reported for 415,616 of the 1.5 million reported injuries and illnesses involving days away from work. (Sources: BLS [2003b,c].) |
